


Star Wars, Razor's Edge. Part 1: Defection

by CJPJones



Series: Razor's Edge [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:15:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24197305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CJPJones/pseuds/CJPJones
Summary: When a group of rookie Imperial Pilots immediately gets sent to the front lines, are they truly ready for what the Imperials will do to achieve ultimate victory?
Series: Razor's Edge [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1746388
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to my friends: Christina, Michaela, and Stella for going through my story many times and for the corrections, edifications, and suggestions they’ve given me to make this story the way it is.

An explosion from behind his TIE-Interceptor shook his fighter, frightening him. “Sithspawn!” the TIE pilot shouted. He knew exactly what that explosion was, but he still checked his scanner to confirm. His wingman was indeed shot down.

“Lead,” said a voice through the intercom. It was Jayan, one of his squadron members. “Don’t know if you know this, but your wingman’s down and that X-wing is still on your tail!” 

Lead rolled his eyes. This was not the time to make jokes. “Thanks, Three,” he said, in a sarcastic voice which showed that he was not happy with his attitude. A laser shot passed him, and he remembered that there was still an X-wing behind him. He did a quick loop, getting his fighter behind the X-wing, fired, and destroyed it.

He quickly looked around to see how the rest of his squadron was doing. His wingman was the only casualty thus far, but they were not prioritizing like they were supposed to. They had destroyed nearly all of the enemy's fighters, but their objective was to destroy a Rebel Carrier within a given time. He looked at his timer to see that they had spent half of their time. Then he saw one of his squad mates being chased by the only two A-wings in this battle. He began to fly towards them to help, but he was not needed. The TIE-interceptor did a corkscrew, and perfectly positioning itself, destroyed one of the A-wings. Neither of them had time to react. The fighter then did a flip, setting itself up again perfectly, and destroyed the other A-wing. He knew who was piloting that TIE. It was Creda, the only girl in their squadron. She was the best pilot in the Academy, and also the woman he loved. But he sighed. He knew that they could never be together. All because of the Navy’s stupid rules. He shook his head, remembering that he had to stay focused. He switched his comm channel to his squadron. “Wrath Squadron, this is Wrath Leader. All fighters, form up on me. We don’t have much time left. We need to destroy that carrier! If we do, we pass. We’re running Slave Flight.” 

They all knew what Slave Flight meant. It was simple; when he began firing, they all fired at the same target. He got confirmation from his squadron, and in record time, all of them were following him. They began to fly towards the carrier. When they entered range, they fired.

Right away, he could tell that their bombarding was damaging the shields, and they would not last much longer. This was it. They would destroy the carrier and succeed. Of course, they would succeed; they were the best team at the Academy. But more importantly, they had something that no other squadron had. They were a family. There was a bond between them that could never be broken.

Out of nowhere, a Nebulon-B frigate and an assortment of other rebel ships jumped from hyperspace a distance away from the Carrier. “Lead, rebel reinforcements!” Creda shouted through the comm unit, shocked by the new forces that they now had to fight. Lead looked in the direction the reinforcements were coming from. In total, there were two CR-90 Corvettes, a Hammerhead Corvette, and a Nebulon-B frigate, with one X-wing squadron.

“That can’t be right!” exclaimed one of his pilots angrily. “The briefing didn’t mention this!”

“I’ll contact Command.” Lead said before he changed his comm unit. “Command, this is Wrath Leader,” he said, trying his best to not show any anger or frustration. “There are more units than were mentioned in the briefing. Please explain.”

“Wrath Leader, this is Command. The briefing must have been wrong,” the command officer said in a sarcastic voice, clearly knowing what was happening. He probably had planned it too. “You will continue to press the attack.” 

This is not how this was supposed to work. It was an outrage, a disgrace against proper military doctrine. This time he did not try to control his temper. He shouted angrily, “But this is unfair! Stop the-”

The officer simply ignored the shout and interrupted the frustrated pilot. “You will press the attack, or you fail. Do I make myself clear?”

Lead knew there was nothing he could do, at least right now. “Yes, sir,” he replied reluctantly.

Lead switched his comlink back from the command’s channel to the squadron’s channel. “Command told us to press the attack. This is unfair, but we are the best squad in the academy. Flight One, with me. We are going to attack that carrier. Flight Two, distract those fighters. Flights Three and Four, attack the other ships. Start with the corvettes and then go to the frigate.”

His pilots acknowledged him, all knowing that this was not fair, and did as they were ordered. Lead, with the remaining two fighters, resumed their attack on the carrier. 

Lead quickly thought up a plan of attack, turned his comm to first flight’s channel, and said, “Okay, Three and Four, on my mark, break off and attack the engines. I’ll attack the bridge.” 

“Copy that,” his men said in unison, not as enthusiastic as before.

Lead started counting down. “Ready? Three, two, one, NOW!” They broke off to either side of him and headed for the engines. The carrier started to fire, but they dodged the shots with ease. When Lead got into range, he opened fire on the carrier. Even though he was able to drain the shields before, without the entire squadron he was only making scratches; he would not be able to do real damage in the long run.

His comlink flickered on, indicating that someone was trying to contact him. He reluctantly turned the comlink on and began to listen. 

“Lead, this is Six.”

“What do you need, Six?” Lead replied, frustrated that he did not just get to the point. He was trying to stay concentrated on the mission at hand.

“Thanks to Creda-I mean Five, all of their fighters are destroyed, and we only lost Liam. What do you want us to do now?” 

Lead looked at his scanners. Three and Four flights had already destroyed a CR-90 Corvette and were now starting to attack the next one. Sadly, they had lost three fighters in the process. He then considered his own situation and realized that he needed more firepower to destroy the shields. “Um, come and help destroy this carrier. Flights Three and Four can handle themselves. We need to finish this mission.”

“Copy that, Lead.” Lead turned off his comm and returned to the first flight’s channel. He hoped they could come in time to destroy the carrier before the reinforcements were able to protect it, but he knew that was unlikely. He fired at the bridge again, but the shields absorbed the blast. 

“This isn’t working,” Lead said to himself. He turned his comm to the right channel. “Three, Four, change of plan, follow me. Second flight is coming. We’re going to give everything we’ve got at that bridge. Wait until my mark to fire.” 

“Copy that, Lead,” Jayan said. When they saw Lead pass by, they followed him and headed back to the bridge, with Second flight not too far behind. “When should we- I’m hit! I’m hit! I’m losing control!” Jayan shouted almost theatrically over the comm, making it seem like he thought he might die or something.

Lead almost laughed at this; not because Jayan got hit, but because of an idea he just thought of. “Three, how damaged are you?”

“Not that much, the laser only grazed my wing. But like I said, I’m losing control!” Three shouted through the comm unit. 

“You’re going down, right?” 

“Most likely,” Jayan said in a nervous voice, clearly regretting his over-exhaustion of the situation.

“We’re coming up on to the bridge,” Four interrupted. “Should I open fire?” 

“Yes, Four,” Lead replied, “and Three, ram the bridge.” 

Three went silent for a few seconds, probably thinking how he should respond to the order. In the end, though, he agreed it was the best idea. “Yes sir,” Three said. He tried his best to pilot his TIE interceptor to the bridge. Luckily, he hit the bridge dead on. The carrier’s bridge exploded, and finally, the rest of the ship as well. 

Lead turned his comm unit from First Flight to the whole squadron. “The carrier is destroyed. Nice work guys- and gal,” he said, specifically pointing out Creda. After he finished, the cockpit window turned black and the cockpit door opened up. Lead hopped out and ran to where his squadron was gathering. He saw Creda and ran towards her. She saw him and gave him a hug.

“We did it! We did it!” he said to Creda. 

“We did it together, Atonai,” she said in reply. Their squad mates then encompassed them, hiding them from any officers who might get them into trouble.

He saw his command officer coming toward them. He quickly released Creda from his arms and walked in front of his squad. The officer was smiling. “Congratulations, Wrath Squadron. You passed.”


	2. Chapter 2

The members of Wrath Squadron had known they were going to pass, but that didn’t stop them from being angry.

Atonai stormed up to the officer, furious at what just happened. “How DARE you do that to us?” He shouted. “It’s not right, it’s not fair, and it’s not what an Imperial would do!”

The officer simply ignored the shouting and responded in a disciplined voice that could overcome a rancor. “You’re right, I did do that to you. This is the Razor Starfighter Academy, the best starfighter academy in the galaxy. You know we push the limits, and you know we force you to think outside the box. Life isn’t fair, so we prepare you for it. Just be happy we didn't send you to fight against actual rebels.”

This actually angered Atonai even more. He got closer to the officer, possibly preparing to get into a fistfight. “But-”

Creda than walked up to him and put her hand on Atonai’s shoulder and whispered. “Let it go.”

Immediately, Atonai’s anger stopped, and he backed away from the officer. “Thank you,” he whispered to Creda. She simply smiled, and together they rejoined their squadron. The officer, still remaining calm, waited until after everyone was settled to speak. “Cadet Atonai, I will dismiss this obtrusion, mainly because I like you and your squadron, but know this, you must control your temper. If Creda wasn’t here, you would have been kicked out three years ago. Anyway, due to the increasing threat of the rebels, we will not have a ceremony; instead, your location assignment will be up within a few days. You will be assigned as a squadron, and Atonai, you will receive the rank of (whatever rank a squadron leader is) In the meantime, you get the rest of the time off. Enjoy it while you can and have a good night.” 

Wrath Squadron was not shocked at this. They had been told that they would be paired into squadrons, train with them, and when they graduated, be deployed together. Atonai looked around, seeing that they were dismissed, and that there was nothing more he could do, and decided to leave. “Great job everyone. It was you guys who made us pass. Let’s head back to the barracks.”

They all followed Atonai, but Creda was the one who spoke out first. “You deserve most of the credit, Atonai,” Creda told him. “You were the one who kept us together when the command officers thought that they could make us fail.” All of the Wrath Squadron nodded in agreement.  
Atonai shook his head. “You are the best pilot here, Creda. It was you who destroyed most of their fighters, and it was Jayan who crashed into the carrier and destroyed it, not me.”

“I can back up that claim,” Jayan said proudly.

Jayan’s wingman piped in. “As can-” 

“Shut your mouth, Jack,” Creda interrupted him. “But you get my point. If it weren’t for you, we would have failed.” 

Atonai nodded slowly. “Fine, fine, I will accept you giving me credit for now, but not forever. My only disappointment was when Hendte got shot down so early into the battle.”

“Yeah,” Jack added. “How did you get shot down?”

Hendte frowned. “To be honest, I’m not sure. An X-wing fighter just came in and a second later, shot me out of the sky.” 

“Okay, we can’t do anything about it now.” Atonai looked at the squadron. “I’m going to go to the mess hall and get some caf. Anyone want to come with me?”

Creda nodded. “Sure, might as well. I always need some caf after a good day of flying.”

“Jack and I will come too,” Jayan added. They left the rest of the squadron and headed on their way. They walked for a little bit in silence until they reached the mess hall. They all got some caf and Jack grabbed two rolls as well. 

Jayan spoke first. “Are you guys going to miss this place?”

Atonai thought for a second. “Probably not. When we get shipped off to a fleet, we can get revenge for what the rebels did on Jedha and Scarif. They can’t go unnoticed for that.”

Creda nodded. “Agreed. The faster the Rebels are defeated, the faster there can be peace.”

“Well, I’m sure going to miss the food. I hear the food in fleets is terrible.” Jack said, right before he took a big bite out of one of the rolls he grabbed.

Creda laughed. “All you care about is food.” 

“Not true,” Jack said, trying to swallow his food. “I also care about drinks.”

Jayan gave a little pouting expression. “So, we mean nothing to you?”

“Not nothing. If I had to choose between food and you guys, I would choose you any day.” Jack paused. “It’s just that food is the best non-living thing in the galaxy.”

Atonai hopped into the conversation. “So why did you want to become a pilot?”

“I didn’t really want to be a pilot. It was just that I had two choices; either to become a pilot or to be a construction worker like my Dad. And since they don’t get good food, I decided to be a pilot.” Jack said, taking another bite out of his roll while doing so.

Atonai frowned, realizing just now why his friend entered into the academy. “How the heck did I not know this before? I’ve known you for what? Four years?”

Jack smiled. “I think I’ve told you this every year since I entered the academy, Atonai. But it’s okay, I know you forget stuff a lot.” 

Creda nudged Atonai jokingly. “Man, you just got roasted.”

Atonai sighed. “I know…” He then looked at the time, hoping to change the subject quickly. “It looks like it’s getting late. I’m going to head back to the barracks and get some sleep.”

Creda nodded. “I’ll join you. I’m getting tired as well.”

Jayan also nodded. “I’m coming. Jack, are you going to join us or are you going to take another big bite out of that roll?” 

Jack smiled. “How about I do both?” He stuffed the rest of the roll in his mouth and put the other in his pocket. Atonai stood up and walked out of the hall, smiling about the fact that he successfully avoided further ridicule. They walked outside, seeing the two moons shining brightly in the sky, which was dark except for the moons. One would say they could hear the wind if they listened.

It was about a fifteen-minute walk from the mess hall to the barracks. When they arrived, Atonai gave Creda a hug, and they separated to their dorms, climbed into their beds, and fell asleep.

***

The void of deep space surrounded the viewport of the new Imperial II-Class Star Destroyer Exploiter; sounds from the crew pit filled the air, the noise of starfighters flying pass the bridge. The Exploiter and the rest of its fleet had been assigned to the border of the unknown regions because there were rumors that the Rebels were hiding there.

“Admiral Saxon!” one of the communications officers shouted. “The patrol fleet is being attacked by Rebel ships!” Saxon walked over to the communications station, his expression like he was both frowning and smiling.  
“How big is the fleet?” Saxon asked with a smile on his face. They had been looking for the Rebels for about a month now, and finally, they appeared. 

A message appeared on the comm unit and the officer read it silently. Then his eyes widened. “The Rebel fleet is huge! They have multiple old CIS-type ships, as well as Nebulon-B frigate.”

Compared to that of the Rebels, the patrol fleet was nothing. It only had one Arquitens-class light cruiser, two raider-class corvettes and four Gozanti-class transports for fighter support. Admiral Saxon’s expression turned into a frown; there was no way the patrol could live long enough to bring the main fleet in. He looked around at his own fleet. There was an Imperial-I class Star Destroyer, an Interdictor cruiser, two Arquitens-class light cruisers, four Raider-class corvettes and then there was his own Imperial-II class star destroyer Exploiter. 

“Tell them to retreat; let’s hope they follow.” Admiral Saxon said bitterly, “Yellow alert! Let’s be prepared if they do.” The sirens of the bridge started to ring. 

“Yes sir, the patrol fleet just went into hyperspace.”

“Were there casualties?”

“Yes, the whole squadron of fighters, a raider-class corvette, and two Gozanti-class transports.” 

“Thank you,” Saxon said before he turned to where the captain was standing, “Captain Terek.”

The captain of the Exploiter approached him. “Yes, sir?”

“Contact the Imperial Center, show them the size of the rebel fleet and request that they send reinforcements. The rebels are perfectly capable of taking our fleet head on, and I want to have the advantage of greater firepower than our enemies.”

“Yes sir,” Captain Terek said. He was about to turn around when he thought of something. “Sir, am I right to say that we lost a squadron?

Saxon nodded. “Yes, Captain.” 

The captain smiled, “The Razor Starfighter Academy has some squadrons ready to be shipped out. Maybe we could request a squadron to replace our loses, alongside the reinforcements.”

“Yes, tell them that we need a squadron. Request the best they have; we don’t want to lose another squadron to the Rebels, do we?”

“No, sir.” The captain said, “I’ll- “

“Also,” Saxon interrupted, “tell them that this would be a good time to test my new TIE, the TIE Saber. We’ll need them to destroy the Rebels.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good.” Saxon walked over to the front of the bridge and stared at the stars. “We’ll find you, Rebels, and when we do, we’ll kill you.”


	3. Chapter 3

Atonai woke up to the sound of the wake-up siren. He got out of his bed, headed to the changing room, and put on his uniform. It has been two days since they passed the test, and yesterday, the command officer said that they’d receive their assignments tomorrow morning. The best part, though, was that he was given the rank of lieutenant. He started to walk to the mess hall for breakfast. The sun had just risen and started to shine. On the walk there, he met Creda first. He took her hand, and said, “Good morning, Creda.” 

Creda turned around. “Oh, good morning, Atonai. Ready to see where we’re going?”

Atonai nodded. “Yeah, I had a dream about how we got shipped to this random outpost in the Outer Rim. And the saddest part is, we never saw a battle. So now I’m just hoping we get sent to a more important planet.”

Creda smiled. “You were always the one who thought of worst-case scenarios.”

Atonai laughed, “What can I say? I always prepare for the worst. That’s how we passed the test, right?”

“Yes, yes it is.” Creda smiled, and then decided to change the subject. “How much would you bet that Jack is on his fourth serving?”

Atonai thought for a little bit. “I’ll bet twenty-five credits that he has more the four servings.”

Creda nodded. “Deal. Let’s run to the mess so I have a better chance of winning.”

“Only because I’m a kind person,” Atonai laughed. “Race you there!” With that, he started to sprint down the hall, with Creda running right behind him. Creda has always been in better shape, but just this once, he beat her there. In the mess hall, there was a big hologram of where the squadrons were going to be sent. Atonai grabbed his food and walked over to the holo. He tried to find where his squadron was, but Creda found it first.

“Look,” Creda said excitedly, pointing to where the name Wrath Squadron was, “we’re going to be sent to an admiral named Ountyor Saxon, so we’re heading to a fleet!” 

“According to the notes,” Atonai read, “his portal was attacked by- rebels, yes! -and they lost a whole squadron of TIE fighters. It says he requested the best squadron the academy has. Looks like we’re the best.”

“if you read on, Admiral Saxon was assigned to the border of the Unknown Regions to search for Rebels. When his portal ran into them, they had to retreat because the rebel fleet was bigger than anticipated. Now he has asked for more forces to fight that number.”

Atonai shook his head. “It’s hard to believe that someone could have a bigger fleet then the Empire.” He tapped Creda and pointed to were Jack and Jayan were sitting. “Looks like Jack has already gotten a lot of food. I think I won that bet.”

Creda walked over to where Jack was sitting and Atonai followed her. “Hey Jack, what serving are you on?”

Jack thought for about two seconds. “This is my fourth serving, I believe. I could be-”

Jayan interrupted him, “No, you’re wrong, that is your fifth, not fourth.”

Atonai smiled. “Looks like I win then. Can you be so kind, Creda, and hand over the credits that are rightfully mine.”

Creda sighed and handed the victor twenty-five credits. “Here you go. Have you guys seen the shipments?”

Jayan nodded. “Yes, we have, and I’m really happy that my question last night was wrong. I’m happy that we will go to a fleet.

Creda nodded and turned to Jack. “Are you happy with the shipments?”

“Well, like I said earlier, fleets don’t really have good food,” Jack said. “Then again, outposts don’t really have good food either, so I guess I’m fine.” 

Creda nudged Jack. “You do only care about food.”

Jack looked at her. “Like I said last night-”

“Yeah, yeah, you told us already,” Atonai burst in. “Also, do you remember when we’re supposed to be shipped off?”

Jayan answered first, “It said we’re to be at the landing platform by oh-twelve hundred hours.”

“That’s in about four hours.” Atonai nodded. “I’m just about done. I hear they just got the simulator program for a new type of TIE fighter, titled the TIE Saber. I’m going to head to the simulators to see if I can try to use it. If you guys want to come, I have no problem with that.” 

Creda smiled. “You know what I hear? You’re trying to see if you can beat me. Well, guess what? I’m in. Jack, Jayan, you coming?”

“Sure,” said Jayan, “why not get one more run in before we go. Should it be a three vs one or should it be a two vs two?”

Jack stopped himself from taking another bite. “Wait a second, who said I’ll join you?”

Atonai frowned. “What, you’re not coming?”

Jack nodded. “I need to get my stuff packed up; I forgot to do it last night. See you on the landing platform.” With that, he left.

“Okay then,” Atonai said, “let’s head to the simulators.” 

***

When Jack arrived at the back entrance of the landing platform, he saw about ten zeta-class cargo shuttles and Lambda-class shuttles. He walked around to see if he can find the rest of his squadron but apparently, they found him first.

“Jack!” Creda shouted, “over here!” Jack heard her voice and headed towards her.

Jack looked around, only to see the people that he left in the mess hall. “Where’s the rest of the squadron?”

Jayan shook his head. “We don’t know, they must not be here yet.”

Jack nodded. “How did the sims go? Who won?”

Creda smiled. “I won most of the battles. The only time I got beat was when they got two of those new fighters as well.”

Jack laughed, “You let a girl beat you, Atonai?”

Atonai shrugged. “She is the best pilot in the squadron.” 

“Oh look, it’s Hendte.” She shouted to him, “Hendte!” Hendte heard her voice and headed towards them.

“Sorry I’m late.” Hendte looked around and frowned. “Looks like I’m not late after all. Where are the-”

Jayan pointed. “There they are.” 

Atonai waited until they arrived to speak. “Where were you guys?”

Ricky, one of the pilots, spoke first. “We decided to wait at the main entrance of the platform till everyone arrived, but it looked like you guys were already in.”

“That would explain why I didn’t see you. I came through the back entrance,” Jack said.

“Same here,” Hendte confirmed.

“What transport is taking us to the fleet?” Creda asked, looking around the platform. Then a speaker called their name.

“Wrath Squadron,” said the voice through the speaker, “please go to the south-west corner of the platform for departure”

Creda looked surprised. “Okay then, that answers my question.” They all headed in the direction that the speaker told them to go. When they arrived at the south-west corner of the landing platform, they only saw a Lambda-class there. An officer and a pilot walked off the transport and headed towards them.

“You must be Wrath Squadron,” the officer said. “I’m Lieutenant Darin."

Atonai shook his hand. “Nice to meet you, I’m Lieutenant Atonai.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Lieutenant.” Lieutenant Darin pointed to the ship. “We’re going to drop you off at Corulag where the reinforcements Admiral Saxon requested are leaving from. Come on, let’s get going.” 

They boarded the shuttle and strapped themselves to the seats. They could feel the ship start to lift off and go into orbit. “Prepare to go to hyperspace,” the pilot said. “Making the jump, now.”


	4. Chapter 4

“General Procon, the patrol just when to hyperspace,” said the droid from the helms station. “Should we follow them?”

“No, it might be a trap. Let’s go back to base.” 

“Roger, Roger,” the droid replied. “Heading into hyperspace.” General Procon looked around the bridge. It was the bridge of an old Providence-II class carrier. The Providence-II was a 2,177-meter long ship that, after the fall of the Republic, the ship’s admiral hid with his fleet to the edge of the Unknown Regions and the Mid Rim where a Separatist space station was. There, the admiral died of starvation and the fleet went silent because of the lack of power and fuel. After the battle of Scarif, the Rebel captain Rahane Procon, who was the captain of the Freedom, one of the two Nebulon-B frigates that escaped the battle, left the Alliance because he thought that they were too aggressive and started his own rebellion. 

A little less than two years later, now stating himself as General Procon, searching for a new home and base of operations, they found the lost Separatist station and its fleet. Knowing that they could fight the Empire head on with the ships and the droid army that came with it, Procon and his men worked to make the fleet active again. They first started out with the droids, and since the fleet was still intact and not a graveyard, it was not hard to make the fleet working again. The first ship they fixed was the Providence-II. General Procon decided to name their first ship the Reminder because it was to remind the Empire that they couldn’t just rule by fear, but that there would be people to stand up to their tyranny. General Procon made the Reminder his own flagship. With the Reminder working, they started to work on their second ship, the Lucrehulk battleship. When the Reminder was able to get supplies, they decided to modify it, adding more weapons, better shields, and they even added a hangar to hold the Nebulon-B frigate Freedom. He gave this ship to his second-in-command, Commander Hagen Dooren, who was a Mon Calamari. Commander Dooren gave his ship the name Profundity, after the flagship of the Mon Calamari Admiral Raddus, which got destroyed in the battle of Scarif. 

“Contact Commander Dooren,” General Procon told the comm droid. “I need to discuss our next move.”

“Roger, Roger,” the droid said, and then he started to type something into the console, then a hologram of the Mon Calamari flickered to life in front of him. 

“You need something, general?” Dooren asked. 

“Yes, I’m concerned about what just happened here,” Procon said somberly. 

Dooren nodded. “Let me guess, you aren’t sure we should stay here because the patrol saw us.” 

Procon smiled. “You know me too well, don’t you?”

Dooren laughed, “Yes, yes I do. And what I think about it is this, you shouldn’t worry about it. We know that they are looking for us and we know that if they attack us near our station, we’ll be able to destroy them.”

A droid interrupted their conversation. “Sir, we are coming out of hyperspace.” The hyperspace lane disappeared, and the darkness of space surrounded the bridge. In the distance, they could see a space station and a big ship in its repair bay, and guarding the station were four Munificent-class Frigates.

“Contact Survival Station,” General Procon told the bridge crew, “and tell them to prepare for docking and refueling,”

“Roger, Roger,” chorused two droids. 

Procon turned to a tactical droid on the bridge. “I’ll be in my quarters. Commander Don, you have the bridge.” With that, General Procon walked off the bridge. 

***

The ride from the academy to Corulag was about six hours long. In that time, Atonai had a long time to think about what he was going to do in the future. Maybe if Atonai became successful enough he could join an elite squadron like the One Hundred Eighty-First. Then Atonai realized that if he did that, he’d have to leave his squadron. He'd have to leave Creda. 

His thoughts were interrupted by the noise of the speakers turning on. 

“We have just entered the Corulag system,” Lieutenant Darin said through the speaker system. “Lieutenant Atonai, you might want to come up to the cockpit.”

“Looks like I’m being summoned,” Atonai said sarcastically while getting off his seat. The rest of the squadron laughed at his remark. Atonai climbed the ladder and approached Darin. “You summoned me, sir?” 

Darin nodded. “I heard your joke, and yes, I did summon you. The captain of the Exploiter, Admiral Saxon’s flagship, sent this report to the Imperial Center yesterday to ask for reinforcements. They decided to have the reinforcements rendezvous here.” Darin handed him a data pad. “This pad has that report; I quickly highlighted the main part of it. Read it over and tell the squadron.”

“Yes, sir,” Atonai replied. He began to read the Captain's report. 

It said: "This is Captain Terek of the ISD-II Exploiter, under the authority of Admiral Saxon. Admiral Saxon’s task is to find and destroy a Rebel holdout. Unfortunately, the Rebel fleet was much bigger than expected; the known size of the fleet is the following: one Providence-II Dreadnought, one Lucrehulk Battleship, eight Munificent-class Frigates, three Recusant-class destroyers, and one Nebulon-B frigate. Atonai’s eyes widened; he never even heard of a fleet that could combat the Empire. I am requesting that you send us two ISDs and few light cruisers; this should be enough to fight their forces. Our first engagement with the Rebels was with our patrol fleet. Admiral Saxon had them retreat but they did have casualties. They lost one Raider-class corvette, two Gozanti-class transports and a full squadron of fighters. I am also requesting that you replace our losses with the reinforcements. It is to my knowledge that the Razor Starfighter Academy has some squadrons ready to be shipped off. Admiral Saxon requests that you send him the best squadron they have as a replacement to the starfighters. We have not found the rebels whereabouts, but we are searching intently for them. Admiral Saxon also would suggest that it would be a good time to test his new Starfighter, the TIE Saber. Please move with haste so we can destroy these rebels."

“There are that many ships in that rebel fleet?” Atonai asked nervously. He knew how big the rebel fleet was on Scarif and it was small compared to this. How could the rebels get a fleet of this size?

“I’m wondering the same thing, and there can be more,” Darin said. “Maybe they found an old CIS base."

“That could be it,” Atonai said, trying to think where a fleet of that size could come from. 

Darin pointed to the Star Destroyer in the distance. “My job is to drop you off there. After that, you’re on your own.”

“Okay, I’ll go tell this to my squadron.” Atonai took one long look at Corulag and then climbed down the ladder.

“Listen up,” Atonai said to his squadron. “Lieutenant Darin gave me some information about the rebel fleet. Apparently, they found an old Separatist base and made the ships their work.” Atonai pushed something on the data pad and handed it to the closest person to him, who was Jayan. “Read the note, then pass it on to the next person.”

Jayan read the note silently. Without saying a word, he handed the pad to Jack, who then read it. The shuttle was silent until the last person read it. Jack spoke first. “Looks like they actually have a fleet that can combat the Empire.”

“I guess you’re right,” Atonai agreed. “We’re going to be dropped off on a star destroyer. From there, we’ll head to Admiral Saxon.” 

“Hey,” Jayan said, trying to cheer everyone up. “We were the best squadron in the academy; do you think some rebels can stop us?” 

Creda smiled. “I guess you’re right, for once in a lifetime.” 

The squadron laughed at Creda’s remark, but Jayan had an offended look on his face. “I’m right more than-”

“We know,” Atonai interrupted. “Anyway, we’ll arrive at the destroyer in about fifteen minutes. In that time, think of a way you can as a squadron stop these rebels from terrorizing the sector.” The squadron nodded at his remark and then went back to what they were doing. “I just hope they think of a good way to do it.”


	5. Chapter 5

The ISD Conquest waited patiently above the planet of Corulag for the rest of the reinforcements to arrive. The ISD Death Hand was supposed to arrive six hours ago but got sidetracked by pirates on its way to Corulag. 

“Captain Gage,” one of the officers said from the command pit, “a Lambda-class shuttle just came out of hyperspace into the system about five minutes ago.”

“How is this important to me?” Captain Gage snapped. “Isn’t it the CSF’s job for this type of stuff?” 

The officer’s face turned red in fear. “The CSF believes this is the shuttle that holds the replacement squadron that Captain Terek asked. They told us to verify it.” 

“Okay then, call them and request their clearance codes. If they pass, have them dock in the main hangar.”

“Yes sir,” the officer said, still nervously of what Gage might do. He turned on his comm unit and signaled the shuttle. “ISD Conquest to Lambda-class shuttle, do you copy?” 

“We copy, ISD Conquest,” said the shuttle’s pilot. 

“Lambda-class shuttle, please transmit your clearance code, ID, and business in the system.” The officer said through the station's comm unit.

“ISD Conquest, we are transporting the replacement starfighter pilots for Admiral Saxon. Transmitting clearance codes now,” the shuttles pilot’s voice crackled through the comm speakers. The officer inserted the code into the computer to see if it checked out; then a green light turned on. 

“Star Rider, you are clear to dock in the ship’s main hanger. Welcome to Corulag.”

***

Atonai thought that the hangar of an Imperial Star Destroyer was huge. He’d seen Star Destroyers from a distance, but never up close. The hangar first started out with the big gap on the bottom of the star destroyer which was big enough to hold almost any corvette. On either side of the gap, there was a large hangar, with TIE fighters hanging from the ceiling. The Star Rider started to enter into the right side of the hangar. The shuttle deployed its landing gear and landed. The first people to leave the shuttle were the TIE fighter pilots themselves. Then after them, came the pilot and the officer. There, waiting for them, was the captain of the Conquest. 

“Welcome aboard the Conquest,” Captain Gage said. “I’m Captain Maximilian Gage. I’m guessing you’re the replacement starfighter pilots the message stated.”

“Yes, sir,” Atonai replied.

“Okay then. To give you a rundown, we are waiting for ISD Death Hand to arrive with the rest of the reinforcements. When they do, we’ll leave immediately. I’ll send a mouse droid to take you to your rooms.” He was interrupted by a beep in his commlink. “I need to return to the bridge now, so I wish you a good night.”

Atonai turned around and faced the officer. “Thank you for getting us here safely. Hope you have a safe trip home.”

“You’re welcome,” Darin said smiling, “hope you have a good time fighting the rebels.”

Atonai nodded and smiled. “Oh, We will.” 

***

The door to the bridge opened up to reveal the captain of the Star Destroyer. When one of the ensigns saw the captain he shouted, “Captain on deck!”

“At ease,” the captain replied. “What seems to be the problem?”

One of the bridge officers was the first to respond. “Sir, a Quasar-Fire carrier just came out of hyperspace, and the captain is requesting to see you.” 

“Patch him through.” He walked over to the holo table in the back of the bridge. The holo flickered to life to show a woman in an imperial uniform.

“Captain Gage,” said the female captain. “It’s Captain Lillian Beauregard.”

“Ah, Captain Lilly, what brings you here to Corulag?” Gage said. Captain Lillian and Captain Gage both went to the same naval academy. They were never friends, but they knew each other. 

“If you’ve read the message, you will see that Admiral Saxon asked when his fighter, ‘the TIE Saber’, he calls it, will come. My ship holds those fighters.”

“Interesting. Have you received any word on the rest of the reinforcements?”

“Actually, yes. I just had a word with the captain of the Death Hand before I arrived. He will be here in less than about five minutes.”

Gage nodded. “Good, the faster he arrives, the faster we leave.” 

“Sir,” Noah interrupted, “the rest of the reinforcements are coming out of hyperspace.” 

“That was fast.” Gage ordered, “Patch the captain of the Night Hand through.” 

Noah nodded. “Yes sir.” He punched some buttons and another figure showed up on the holo-table, this time a man in an imperial uniform.

“Captain, finally arrived, have you?” Gage said harshly.

“You know the reason, Captain Gage,” the captain replied bitterly.

“Gentlemen,” Lilly interrupted, “if we can stop bickering and start moving, that would be very helpful.”

Gage nodded. “Do you have the coordinates, captain? Or do I need to send them to you.” 

“Yes, I do,” the captain said, “and so do the rest of the ships with me.” 

“Okay then, let’s get moving. See you in the Unknown Regions.” Gage turned off the holo table and turned to the navigational station. “Take us about, ensign, and make the jump to hyperspace.”

“Yes sir,” the ensign said. The Star Destroyer started to turn in the direction where Admiral Saxon was. “Making the jump, now.” The stars started to drag and then vanished altogether, with the hyperspace lane replacing them. 

“Ensign, when should we arrive at Admiral Saxon’s location?" 

“It will take us four days to arrive at Saxon’s location.” 

“Good, I’ll be in my quarters. Commander, you have the bridge,” Gage said before he left the room.


End file.
